French Future Tense and Near Future in French

Future Tense and Near Future are not difficult to catch in French:

The Near Future is quite similar to the English one, and the Future Tense is easy to understand when you know the rule, follow this link to practice to https://www.frenchspanishonline.com/beginnersfrench/school/weather/weatherfuture.html. You will find a text with gaps to fill, also a map with audio files to revise.

1. Near Future – Futur Proche

I am going to eat : Je vais manger
We also say: I am going to go to eat: je vais aller manger

The structure is: verb to go present tense + infinitive form of the following verb.

The Futur proche may be used for near events but also for further ones.

2. Simple Future – Futur Simple

The rule is to use the infinitive form of the French verb till the last r then to add the end of the French verb to have:

Manger + ai (j’ai) = je mangerai
Manger + as (tu as) = tu mangeras
Manger + a (il a) = il mangera
Manger + ons (nous avons) = nous mangerons
Manger + ez (vous avez) = vous mangerez
Manger + ont (ils ont) = ils mangeront

Prendre: to take

Prendr(e) + ai (j’ai) = je prendrai
Prendr + as (tu as) = tu prendras
Prendr + a (il a) = il prendra
Prendr + ons (nous avons) = nous prendrons
Prendr + ez (vous avez) = vous prendrez
Prendr + ont (ils ont) = ils prendront

Irregular form

Avoir: j’aurai, tu auras, il aura, nous aurons, vous aurez, ils auront
Être: je serai…
Vouloir: je voudrai…
Aller: j’irai…
Faire: je ferai…
Venir: je viendrai…
Appeler: j’appellerai…

Pay attention to the English exceptions that do not exist in French:

After expressions like while/when/before/after/by the time/as soon as/if/unless you don’t use the future tense in English but in French, yes, we do:

I will dress when I wake up: Je m’habillerai quand je me réveillerai
As soon as I’ve eaten the meal, I will watch TV: aussitôt que j’aurai terminé le repas, je regarderai la télé.

How to express the Future in French:

1. With the Present Tense:

Demain, je mange au restaurant
L’année prochaine, je vais en France

2. With the Near Future

Demain, je vais manger au restaurant
L’année prochaine, je vais aller en France

3. With the Future tense

Demain, je mangerai au restaurant
L’année prochaine, j’irai en France

In these 2 sentences, the 3 tenses are interchangeable.

We use the present tense for all future events
We use the near future for really near future and all future events
We don’t use the future tense for really near future.